


Starting Over

by donttellmemyusernameisused



Series: Starting Over 'verse [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Asexual Character, Asexual Sirius Black, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-28
Updated: 2016-07-28
Packaged: 2018-07-27 05:41:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7605826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/donttellmemyusernameisused/pseuds/donttellmemyusernameisused
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A prequel to Their First Date.  Can be read alone but it would be lovely if you go and read that first.  </p><p>//“Well, what should I do now?” James sighed at the woman in front of him.  Dr. McGale or McGonall or sth.  He did not know why she looked as if she was disappointed with him...<br/>“I don’t tell you what to do, Mr. Potter.  I help you find the answer,” she said condescendingly, then her face softened, “have some biscuits, please.”//</p>
            </blockquote>





	Starting Over

“Mr. Potter, when was your last date with your former husband?”

 

“We never had a date.  Not when we were boyfriends, nor during the 3 year period of our marriage,” James said, slightly uncomfortable.  James had never thought there was any problem with that and he still did not now, but he felt that the counsellor, who sat primly in front of him with the sort of clothes he saw in 60s dramas, not a single strand of hair out of place, would find it a very huge problem indeed.   He flinched internally as she rose one single eyebrow without moving any other muscles, but he did not cower.  He immediately launched his defence because if public school education taught him anything it was that he could talk himself out of just about any situation.  

 

Their marriage was not arranged or forced or unhappy, but dating had never been the sort of thing any of them thought was important throughout their whole course of relationship.  They were immediate bestmates the moment they spoke to each other on their first day of school when they were eleven.  Sirius said “Mr. Brigham looks like he got a stick up his arse.”  “I feel sorry for that stick,” James replied promptly.  They were inseparable ever since then.  Best friends, partners in crime, _soulmates._  They did not have a moment in which they decided to become more than just friends or that they were in a romantic relationship or anything like that.  Sirius looked him in the eyes four months after he ran away from home and told him, “I think I am biromantic asexual.”  James nodded solemnly and said, “okay,” even though he did not know what that meant.  Sirius saw right through him.  “That means I can have romantic feelings for both genders but I would probably never be sexually attracted to anyone, you prick,” he laughed, body shifting closer to James because November midnight was cold at Astronomy Tower, and mostly because Sirius wanted to.  James said okay again and shifted closer to Sirius too.  James wondered if that meant that Sirius would hate him if he kissed him.  His heart broke a little at that thought, but he did not say anything because...well, _because._ Sirius fell asleep beside him shortly after as alcohol had always made him sleepy.  James woke up the next morning just in time to see the last sliver of sunrise painting Sirius, who blinked groggily at James.  

 

James smiled widely at his friend, because that moment he realised if Sirius would ever romantically love someone, it would be him. He would be fine with not kissing Sirius for his whole life when he had that.  So at some point they started referring each other as boyfriends.  James would see other people too, and he would sleep with them.  The first time, he asked Sirius if it was all right, but Sirius looked at him like he had grown two heads, “yeah, of course.  What the fuck, mate?”  James just glared for a whole minute before Sirius added, “I mean, if you are asking me _how to_ date and have sex with people, I would lend you the books I read during my experimentation period, but they are bullshit.”  James flipped himself down to the grass next to Sirius and gave him the finger, “I know how to sleep around.”  There was that, and James never brought it up again.  Sometimes he would tell Sirius about his dates, but he did not do that much because Sirius seemed to be more interested in how to blow up the Grand Hall.  

 

After they graduated from Uni (same subject–– Law, same school –– Trinity College, Cambridge), Sirius asked him to marry him when they were moving into their new flat.  “Marry me and I would carry one of your boxes,” Sirius said it in between his breathless laughs as James almost dropped his box of porcelain dolls (Remus and Pete gave him those when he tried to compose a love poem to Sirius that said, “your skin is whiter and shinier than porcelain.”)  They registered as soon as they could and had a “wedding” in their favourite pub with their friends who gave them shit about how they would shag like bunnies for the next month.  James and Sirius humour them because why the hell not?  It never had been anyone’s business what they did behind closed doors.  That night, James got his first kiss from Sirius, a tiny peck on his lips that felt like a butterfly.  James woke up the next morning with an erection which he took care of in the bathroom before Sirius woke up.  

 

Their relationship carried on pretty much the same as it was before their marriage, except now Sirius would kiss him lightly until James lost count of the kisses he received.  Their second year of marriage started with James initiating a kiss for the first time.  He stayed longer than Sirius would but Sirius did not seem to mind.  After that, it was a fair share between kissing and being kissed.  James had never been that happy in his life and he always thought he was the happiest man in the world since he met Sirius at eleven.

 

Their problem started in at the end of their third year relationship.  It went like this:

“I want a divorce,” said Sirius.

“What? How… what _why_?”

Sirius casually put the dirty dishes into the cleaning machine, turned it on and rinsed his hands.  “I want to,” Sirius said and turned to face James, waiting.

James, heaven forbid, had never successfully denied Sirius anything he wanted even though James felt he had died inside.  

 

3 days later their divorce papers were settled.  James wished they had written a less comprehensive prenup.  Actually, he wished that they had not written a prenup at all, but at the time they just graduated from law school and prenup was the sort of practical joke that was funny.  This practical joke was unfortunately very well written and even though James knew that he could have dragged things longer because prenups were not exactly legally-binding.  There was just no point to argue.  Sirius moved to their guest-room because obviously three years ago, they thought they would still be sharing a flat if they got a divorce (and a joint bank account too.)  Sirius also thought they were still best friends and would continue to talk to James like he always had and cook dinner and do the laundry and bring him lunch at work.  They did not cuddle anymore but Sirius still rested his legs on James’s thighs when they were watching the telly because obviously that did not cross certain lines in Sirius’s head.  James punched him when Sirius tried to give him a shoulder rub and Sirius had the audacity to look confused.  Despite all that, James failed to find any explanation as to why Sirius wanted the divorce.  He also failed to be angry with Sirius for more than 3 seconds because God help him, he was still hopelessly in love with the greatest asshole in the world.  

 

“Well, what should I do now?” James sighed at the woman in front of him.  Dr. McGale or McGonall or sth.  He did not know why she looked as if she was disappointed with him.  He paid an awful lot of money to felt like he was 16 again in the Board’s room defending why he needed to publish a pornographic magazine that had nothing but nearly naked boys in drag (single-sex boarding school) called “Mischief Managed” (he was 16, smart, rich and had a boyfriend that was _bored._ )

 

“I don’t tell you what to do, Mr. Potter.  I help you find the answer,” she said condescendingly, then her face softened, “have some biscuits, please.”

 

James refrained from storming out of her office but he was kindly reminded that he did not have to because his hour was up and he needed to leave.

 

So here James was 26, divorced, in love and desperate in the too big flat he paid for with his family's old money.  He needed to be at court tomorrow morning at nine and he did not even know whether his client would be pleading guilty or not but he could not bring himself to open the box of briefs.  He knew he was selfish, because his petty relationship problem should not be the reason why someone did not get a fair trial.  On the other hand, he told himself he needed to be able to save himself before he saved others.  He closed his eyes and counted his pulse.   _One, two, three…_ “Have you even opened that box?”

 

James opened his eyes.  Sirius looked at him accusingly. His hair was in the kind of messy that meant he had just murdered the opposing counsel with paperwork and his eyes sparkled in the way that meant he was confident to win some horridly bland fraud case tomorrow.  Most importantly, he was so beautiful James wanted to cry.

 

Sirius must have mistaken James’s expression as being clueless with his current case.  He ran his hand through James hair soothingly while James forced himself to blink back tears.  “Come on, Prongs.  Start from the beginning, give things a fresh start, read the briefs again.  You will find something.  You always do,” Sirius’s hands, soft and steady massaged his forehead, “someone might go to jail if you don’t, my great defence counsel.”  

 

“Fresh start.  You and me.  First date,” James croaked.  The words settled in James head at the same time he said it.  James vaguely imagined Dr. McGale’s eyebrow to fall back from her hairline to the normal level.  

 

Sirius’s hands jerked away like he was tased. “I don’t think so, James.  It’s over.”

 

“Please.”

 

James grinned weakly at Sirius.  Sirius too, would never really say no to James.  

 


End file.
